Hair curler



7, 1965 N. L. SOLOMON 3,200,826

HAIR CURLER Filed May '7, 1963 INVENTOR. NATHAN L. SOLOMON ATTOR NE YS United States Patent 0 spouses HAIR (IURLER Nathan L. Solomon, R0. Box 55% Englewoed, Nu l. Filed May '7, 1963, Ser. No. 278,667 5 Claims. (ill. 13241) The present invention relates to a hair curler or roller and more particularly relates to a curler adapted to be self-applied by the wearer.

Hair curling, as practiced today in the home and beauty shops, involves division of the hair of the user into various tresses or swatches. Each of the tresses or swatches is evenly wound on a hair curler or roller and by dampening the tress with water or chemicals or applying heat or the like, the swatch or tress is caused to take the form imparted to the hair by the curler.

As is well-known in the art, during hair waving treatment, the hair filaments elongate and contract during the dampening and drying operations. A curler must embody adequate means for compensating for the changes in length of the hair filaments in the curling process. Hence, a curler should be resilient to provide tension for the curl during the entire process, and be firm enough to support the curl. Additionally, the curler should have convenient but positive hair holding means to hold the curl in place on the curler and the curler on the head of the user during the drying process.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a simple and effective hair curler which retains the hair filaments from circumferential movement about the curler body, and is resilient and firm enough to support the curl during the curl forming process.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a resilient, inexpensive hair curler, which includes a supporting member integral with a hairholding member, which enables the curler to be held close to the head of the user.

Another object is to provide a resilient hair supporting member mounted on a firm central support member integrally attached to a hair holding means, all of which I is preferably made of light, flexible, plastic material.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a hair curler, which is inexpensive, light and simple to use, which has a compressible curler body mounted on a unitary central support member with pivotable hair holding means integrally attached thereto and which coacts with the central support member for releasably engaging the hair holding means to the central member.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a hair curling device which has a compressible hair supporting member, generally cylindrical in shape and of a porous material, removably mounted on a central support member, and having a bail pivotally and integrally connected to said support member and cooperating therewith for holding the hair wound on the curl support member locked in position until released.

Other objects and features of the invention will be apparent when the following description is considered in connection with the annexed drawings, wherein like parts are indicated by like reference numerals throughout, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective, exploded view showing a hair curler in accordance with the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a front elevational view or" a curler in accordance with the present invention, with a portion broken away, in detail, showing a locking mechanism;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken substantially along the lines 3-3 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 5 is a view similar to that shown in FIGURE 4, showing the locking tab in locked position.

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Referring now more particularly to the drawings, a curling device Iii is shown having a hair supporting member 12, which is a tubular cylindrical member on which the hair is wound. Member 12 is elastically resilient and preferably of a porous material of a sponge-like form, such as foam rubber, polyurethane sponge, or other synthetic, or resinous, or plastic sponge, which are readily compressed, but readily spring back to their original shape when the pressure is released, and which are capable of readily absorbing moisture. Tubular member 12 has an axial bore 14. Slidably received within bore 14 of cylindrical member 12 is a central support member 16. Preferably support member 16 is of tubular cylindrical shape having a bore 17 therein, and has a slightly greater diameter than the diameter of bore 14 to insure a satisfactory frictional fit, so as to prevent unintentional rotation of tubular member 12 on support member 16.

integrally connected to support member 16 adjacent one end is a generally rectangular bail l8. Bail 18 has spaced apart sides 2%, which are generally parallel to each other and to the axis of support member 16. Corresponding ends of sides 2b are integrally connected to a transverse end member 22, which is integrally attached to support member 16 adjacent one end. Each of transverse members 22 has a reduced cross-sectional area indicated at shown adjacent central support member 16. Support member 16, from its free end to a transverse plane passing through ends 223, is of a length slightly greater than the length of said support member 12, which aids in locking and mounting, in a manner as will be discussed hereinafter.

The corresponding ends of sides 2% opposite to ends 22, are inte rally interconnected by a transverse end member 26, having an inwardly directed tab or flap 2S. Advantageously the free end of support member l6 has a pair of longitudinally directed slits 3% which, as shown in FIG- URE 2, lie in a plane, transverse to a plane containing tab 23. Tab 28 is positioned along transverse end 26 for coacting with the free end of support member 16 to provide a releasable interfitting latch means for maintaining the support member 16 in its closed position as seen best in FIGURE 5. Slits St in the end of support member 16 facilitates the movement of tab 233 into yieldable snapping engagement with bore 17 of member to or releasing the engagement there'between, as indicated in FIGURES 4 and 5.

If desired, the surfaces of the free end of member 16 containing slits 30 may be flattened to aid in positively engaging tab 28.

Preferably, when support member 16 is in its closed position with respect to bail 1%, reduced sections 24 of ends 22 are in their unstressed position.

In operation, support member 16 is slidably received within bore 14 of hair supporting memberlZ. Bail 18 1S pivoted away from support member 16 about thinned sections 24 of transverse ends 22 in a direction indicated by arrow 36, so that hair support roller 12 is displaced angularly from bail 13. The torsion applied to reduced sections 24 by the respective angular displacement between bail 18 and support member 16 llexes and stresses sections 24. In this displaced position, the tress or strand of hair to be curled, not shown, has its outer ends wrapped around the body of hair support member 12 and wound thereon. The Winding operation is facilitated by the user holding bail 18 and rotating it. Since bail 18 is integral with support member 16, which in turn is frictionally connected to hair support member 12, when bail 18 is rotated, tubular member 12 is also rotated. After the tress of hair is fully wound on member 12, and curler 10 is as close to the head of the user as desired, bail 18 is pivoted back in a direction opposite to arrow 36, to its initial position with respect to tubular member 12, so as to position the wound tress of hair on hair supporting member 12 within bail 18. Sides of bail 18 normally engage the outer periphery of the wound curl. As shown in FIGURES 2 and 4, the tab 28 engages the slitted end of support member 16, and is snapped into locking engagement as shown in FIGURE 5, so as to maintain the support member and the hair wound on the foam member 12 in a flexed position between sides 26 of bail 18.

If a large amount of hair is wound on hair supporting member 12 and is greater than the distance from the outer peripheral surface of hair support member 12 and the inner peripheral surface of sides 20, sides 20 are flexed outwardly or bowed causing transverse ends 26 and 22 to move towards each other, hence tab 28 is forced further into bore 17 of support member 16, reducing the flexibility of tab 28 and reducing the chance of accidental displacement of bail 18 from holding the hair wound on member 12.

Latching tab 28 is easily engaged and disengaged with the free end of support member 16 by the longitudinal flexing of reduced sections 24 of transverse end 22, and transverse end 26, and the inward flexing of sides 20, as shown in FIGURE 2. When tab 28 is in its fully locked position within bore 17, shown in FIGURE 5, bail 18 returns to its original unfiexed position relative to member 16 and member 16 is in its closed position.

While support member 16 is shown as a tubular cylinder, it could assume other geometrical configurations. Further, the outer surface of member 16 could be roughened or have projections thereon to increase the friction relationship between member 16 and compressible member 12 for preventing relative rotation between the two members.

While compressible member 12 was shown as a separate member which is mounted on support member 16, the members could be molded in one piece.

Additionally, bail or hair holding members 18 could have geometric configurations other than a rectangle.

It is thus seen that the use of the integral, unitary bail and curler support member provides a simple to use curler, which provides rapid and quick winding and locking of a curl by even the most unskilled operator. The unitary bail and support provides a simple and positive structure for holding the wound hair in place on the hair supporting member. Support member 16 provides rigidity and support to resilient tubular member 12 to prevent unwanted change in the shape of the curl during drying, but yet the foam body of support member 12 provides a comfortable and quick-drying hair support surface.

While one embodiment has been described above, it will be understood that many variations thereof will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the foregoing description shall be deemed illustrative only, and not construed in a limiting sense, the present invention being defined solely by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A hair curling device comprising a resilient tubular hair supporting member on which a curl is to be wound, a stiffening member having a recess at one end and axially slidable within said hair supporting member and extending beyond the transverse edges of said hair retaining member, a bail spaced from and surrounding three sides of said hair supporting member, torsionally and axially flexible arms integrally interconnecting corresponding ends of said bail to the other end of said stiffening member, said arms extending transversely from said stiffening member and being torsionally flexed in response to pivoting said bail with respect to said stiffening member, and a 4 flexible tab integrally extending from said bail adjacent the other end of said stiffening member, said tab adapted to be inserted into the said recess in said stifliening member in closed position for releasably locking said stiffening member and said bail.

2. A hair curling device comprising a resilient hair supporting member on which a curl is to be wound, a central support member coaxially slidable Within said resilient hair supporting member, a bail integrally and flexibly attached to one end of said support member, said integral attachment being torsionally flexible about its axis in response to relative angular movement between said bail and said central support member about the axis of said attachment, so that the free end of said central support member is pivotable from a closed position within said bail to an open position outside of said bail, and means releasably connecting the free end of said support member to said bail when the free end of said support member is in its closed position.

3. A hair curling device comprising a resilient elongated tubular hair supporting member, a stiffening member coaxially slidably received within said tubular member, a generally U-shaped member spaced from said stiffening member, arms torsionally flexible about their axes interconnecting the free ends of said U-shaped member to said stiffening member adjacent one end, said arms extending generally transversely to the longitudinal axis of said hair supporting member and being torsionally flexed in response to angular movement between said stiflening member and said U-shaped member about the axis of said arms, and cooperating means on the free end of said stiffening member and the base of said U-shaped member for releasably locking said members.

4-. A one-piece hair curling device comprising a yieldable elongated hair support member, hair holding means surrounding and spaced from three sides of said support member, arms integrally interconnecting corresponding ends of said hair holding means and said support member, said arms extending transversely to the longitudinal axis of said support member and being torsionally flexible about their axes, said support member being twistable about said arms with respect to said hair holding means from a closed position Within said hair holding means to an open position outside of said hair holding means, and means for releasably interlocking the free end of Said support member to said hair holding means when said hair holding means is pivoted to its closed position.

5. A one-piece bail and stiffening member for use with a tubular resilient hair retaining member, comprising a stiffening member adapted to be slidably received within said tubular hair retaining means, hair retaining means spaced from said stiffening member, arms torsionally flexible about their axes transversely extending away from said stiflening member and integrally interconnecting corresponding ends of said hair retaining means and said stiffening member, said hair retaining means being pivotable by twisting said arms, and means releasably interlocking said hair retaining means and said stiffening member in hair retaining position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,595,806 8/26 Moskovitz et al. 132-41 1,868,412 7/32 Foote l324l 2,388,797 11/45 Panushka et a1 132-41 2,499,204 2/50 Weaver 132-41 2,874,705 2/59 Louthan l3241 2,937,649 5/60 Gresham et al. 13241 RICHARD A. GAUDET, Primary Examiner. 

5. A ONE-PIECE BAIL AND STIFFENING MEMBER FOR USE WITH A TUBULAR RESILIENT HAIR RETAINING MEMBER, COMPRISING A STIFFENING MEMBER ADAPTED TO BE SLIDABLY RECEIVED WITHIN SAID TUBULAR HAIR RETAINING MEANS, HAIR RETAINING MEANS SPACED FROM SAID STIFFENING MEMBER, ARMS TORSIONALLY FLEXIBLE ABOUT THEIR AXES TRANSVERSELY EXTENDING AWAY FROM SAID STIFFENING MEMBER AND INTEGRALLY INTERCONNECTING CORRESPONDING ENDS OF SAID HAIR RETAINING MEANS BEING PIVOTABLE BY TWISTING SAID ARMS, AND MEANS RELEASABLY INTERLOCKING SAID HAIR RETAINING MEANS AND SAID STIFFENING MEMBER IN HAIR RETAINING POSITION. 